Alis Volat Propriis
by AsreonInfusion
Summary: After the events of AC, most of Jenova's cells are dissipated or destroyed. Sephiroth gathers the few remaining to return once more, dragging Cloud into a disturbing new plan to ensure the continuation of Jenova's legacy. Sephiroth/fem!Cloud genderswap, written for the FFVII Kink Meme. Originally a one-shot smut fic, but then it developed plot on me...
1. Chapter 1

**WARNINGS: Dub-con, genderswap (fem!Cloud, i.e. Cloud with girl parts, i.e. het), implied pregnancy/intent to cause pregnancy**

Dear Gaia, this thing was a monster.

I have a soft spot for any of my favourite FFVII boys genderswapped, but that does not mean that I should attempt to write it! This was my first time attempting het smut, and it has been the most painful, difficult thing I've ever written. orz I think it managed to turn out fairly okay in the end, at least (it better have after all that effort DX), but I'd rather not try to write any more of it any time soon!

The difficulty of writing this was only rivalled by the difficulty with coming up with a title.

Also, the genderswap thing itself was quite difficult to balance. On the one hand it's a smut fic, let's just get to the sexy times already. But there still needs to be some kind of reaction to something like that happening otherwise it would just be silly. Then again, these guys get turned into _frogs_ on a fairly regular basis (at least they do if you're like me and walk around Gongaga without equipping properly whoops), which is a completely different physiology entirely.

...I am now imagining crack!fic of the party coming across a Touch Me for the very first time and getting turned into frogs, and having _no idea_ how to move around or do anything because the legs and arms are all in different places and they don't even walk they hop and how the fuck do you co-ordinate that? And they'd just be falling around all over the place while they figured it out and it'd be pretty hilarious.

But, uh, anyway. Yes. The point is that I think Cloud could handle being the opposite gender for a bit, especially knowing it's just a temporary materia effect and reversible. XD (Until he realises he's going to have to be stuck like that for at least nine months... but that's a different matter.)

This is kink meme porn, of course, so please see the original prompt below; I would recommend reading it for the full summary and warnings.

**SephCloud, post AC. Sephiroth gets resurrected-again. However he can only live for a limited amount of time as all the Sephiroth clones are dead and gone, so he decides to create offspring because having somebody have half his DNA walking around Gaia would make things much easier for him to come back to life in the future.**

**He wants his offspring to be physically strong and cool and everything else, so he plans to have the strongest person on the planet as his offspring's other parent. But since Cloud, the physically strongest person alive, is a guy, Sephiroth turns Cloud into a girl. He then fucks girl!Cloud.**

**If possible, fun with manipulate materia. Dubcon, but Cloud turns really willing and everything at the end.**

* * *

Again. A-_fucking_-gain.

Cloud split his Fusion Swords, blocking with First Tsurugi as he lashed out with the other blades. Sephiroth just smirked, evading effortlessly.

How many times were they going to fight like this? Oh, Cloud would defeat Sephiroth in the end, there was no doubt of that. But what was the victory even worth when he _kept coming back?_

"You don't seem pleased to see me, Cloud."

"As if!"

All he'd wanted was a _break_. A moment to get away and collect himself. That was why he'd come here, why he'd felt drawn to the seclusion of the ruins of the City of the Ancients. He had felt a presence as he'd approached, but for so long he had associated this place with Aerith that he'd just assumed... It had been stupid of him to assume anything, he realised. He was paying for that mistake now.

(Maybe Sephiroth had been calling him all along.)

"How can you even be here, Sephiroth? I defeated you."

"Yes, you did," Sephiroth acknowledged, as if this was inconsequential.

"I'll do it again!"

Their blades clashed, filling the air with the sound of ringing metal. Sephiroth was toying with him; his moves were defensive, the few strikes he made easily blocked.

Cloud swung Tsurugi in a quick upwards slash, forcing Sephiroth to retreat.

"I am not here to fight you, Cloud," he said evenly.

"Too bad, cause I'm not about to let you live!"

Sephiroth seemed amused by this, which only irritated Cloud more. He threw himself into the offensive, sending powerful strikes raining down on Sephiroth. Blow after blow, forcing him back. Cloud feinted and re-struck with speed only the mako-enhanced could manage, and was rewarded with the sight of blood, deep crimson against Sephiroth's ghost-pale skin, from a shallow gash nicked where Cloud had almost broken straight through Sephiroth's defence.

Cloud allowed himself a small, smug grin.

"Very good," Sephiroth purred, wiping the blood away with a fingertip. "Your strength and skill hasn't diminished at all."

"Then stop playing around and fight me properly."

Sephiroth smiled, a cruel light in his narrowed eyes.

In an instant, the tide turned. Cloud was forced to stumble back into the defensive, barely blocking the sudden, aggressive attacks Sephiroth threw at him. Cloud might have been as strong as ever, but so was Sephiroth, and Cloud found himself suddenly fighting bitterly for the ground he gained so easily a moment ago.

The previous toying had led him to underestimate Sephiroth - maybe that had been his plan all along. Just one attack that was a fraction too slow let Sephiroth past his guard, and then it was over. Cloud found himself disarmed, trapped with his back against the wall of one the City's shell-like houses. The Fusion Swords skittered well out of reach, and Masamune was suddenly at his throat. He could feel his own pounding pulse beneath the cold steel.

"I am not here to fight you," Sephiroth said, lowering the blade.

Cloud stared up in surprise. But the surprise faded as Sephiroth moved in close, pinning Cloud against the wall with his own body.

The position they ended up in was uncomfortably intimate. Their hips pressed together, Sephiroth's legs between Cloud's, and the hand on Cloud's waist rested there in a manner that had nothing to do with immobilising him. Their faces were just inches away from each other, Sephiroth's heavy breath warm against Cloud's lips.

Same as always.

"Stop it," Cloud hissed.

Sephiroth licked a path down Cloud's exposed throat before biting down, bruising, marking the flesh right where he knew Cloud was sensitive. Cloud gasped.

It seemed that every time they fought they somehow ended up entangled in one of these little interludes before the end of their battle. Every. Damn. Time.

"Stop it, Sephiroth!"

Cloud squirmed, fighting to push him away. Sephiroth merely seemed amused by Cloud's struggle.

"Why fight? You know you want this."

No. _No._ Cloud wasn't going to let this happen. Not now, not _again_. Anything they'd had between them was in the past. Those precious, fleeting days when Sephiroth had been his world, when they'd been so enamoured with each other... before Nibelheim, before everything went to hell... Yeah, well. That had all been fucked up a long time ago.

Cloud couldn't tell what it was now; obsession, adoration, revulsion, attraction, the bitter reminder of everything that could have been but never would be. Sephiroth made his blood boil.

And even though it was stupid and fucked up and beyond unhealthy, Sephiroth was right. He wanted this. Against all reason, against all better judgement. He wanted this.

When Sephiroth pinned his wrists above his head and Cloud fought to push him off, he could have succeeded. But he didn't, and Sephiroth knew.

"Good, puppet."

Their lips met. The kiss was almost brutal, as though it were just another facet of their battle. But not unskilled for its aggression, and Cloud lost himself completely in the feeling of Sephiroth ravaging his mouth. He was panting by the time they broke apart.

Cloud knew how this went by now. Sephiroth would strip him, touch him, fuck him, all lust and possession and dominance. Cloud would hate it (hate that he loved it), but he would still climax every bit as hard as Sephiroth did. And when they had caught their breath, they would take up their blades and finish what they started. Cloud would pretend that it was a victory when Sephiroth died again.

Except-

Sephiroth traced something cool and round against Cloud's cheek. Materia. That wasn't normally part of the game. What was he...?

Cloud shuddered as the magic washed through him, painfully prickling at his flesh like pins and needles. Prickling and pulling and changing, and Cloud immediately recognised the feeling; that had been a Transform. Or something very like it. But Sephiroth would never use materia to cast Mini or Frog on him, even though it would tide the battle inevitably in his favour. That wasn't his style at all. So what was different this time?

Cloud wasn't about to stick around to find out.

Sephiroth had been concentrating more on casting the materia than on Cloud, and Cloud took advantage of that. He threw his weight forward, elbow swinging up to crack against Sephiroth's jaw. Sephiroth's head snapped back. Cloud used the newly created distance between them, diving off to the side - something was off about his balance, a shift in his weight, but he didn't have time to analyse it - before Sephiroth could retaliate.

But even if Sephiroth had failed to anticipate the move, he knew exactly where Cloud would head.

Cloud's fingers had almost brushed Tsurugi's hilt before he was yanked backwards with a painful wrench to his shoulder, finding himself in Sephiroth's grip once more. One hand was at his throat, not yet applying any pressure but ready to, the other arm wrapped around his chest like an iron brace.

Cloud froze.

Normally, the location of Sephiroth's arm wouldn't have posed a problem. But this time Cloud suddenly realised it was pressing against two lumps of flesh that most certainly had not been there before.

Breasts. He had fucking breasts.

And worse than that. Cloud was suddenly very aware of a distinct _lack _in the crotch area, and an ice chill of panic began to settle in his gut.

"What. The fuck. Did you do." Cloud thought that had come out very calmly, all things considered.

"Ah, do I have your attention now?" He could practically hear the smirk in Sephiroth's low purr. "I told you, I don't want to fight you, Cloud. I have a much more important use for you than that."

"Why. Am I. A girl?"

Sephiroth bit the shell of Cloud's ear, making him hiss and squirm in Sephiroth's grip. "You asked how I was still alive, correct?"

"It was more of a rhetorical question," he deadpanned, his voice a dangerous monotone. Not to mention Cloud was rather more concerned with the more immediate issue.

He was a fucking _girl_.

He? She? He; he was.

Fuck.

Cloud took a deep, shuddering breath. He didn't know what Sephiroth's game was, but it didn't matter. It was the materia, that much was obvious. The magic had felt very similar to a Transform; same materia, different spell, perhaps. That meant it would most likely wear off as soon as he had defeated Sephiroth, and even if that failed, it was nothing a high-level Esuna couldn't fix. Right?

His hands clenched into fists. Right. So he was _not _going to panic.

He wasn't going to panic, not even when Sephiroth's grip on him loosened, turning into something much more sensual. Slowly, casually, Sephiroth unzipped the front of Cloud's turtleneck, exposing the new assets Cloud now possessed. The top wasn't made to contain anything extra in the chest area, and the tight fit pushed them out obscenely.

"Cute," Sephiroth smirked.

"Shut up!"

Sephiroth's hands slid inside the fabric, cupping Cloud's breasts almost experimentally. Cloud was disconcerted to find they fit full and perfect in Sephiroth's palms (as if the fact he had breasts at all wasn't disconcerting _enough_). He gasped as Sephiroth began to massage them. The new flesh was much more sensitive than his chest had ever been in his normal body, and the way Sephiroth was touching them sent jolts of heat down to Cloud's stomach.

Except, not quite. It was lower than that. If he'd still been a guy, he knew he would've been getting hard for sure. But he wasn't. He was a girl, with... girl parts. Cloud could feel it, somehow, an increasing awareness of a warm, insistent ache between his legs. And that was really, _really _kind of disturbing, but at the same time he couldn't deny that he was turned on.

And Sephiroth, damn him, knew exactly what his actions were doing. The heated flush on Cloud's skin and the trembling breaths told him everything. He kissed the back of Cloud's neck before continuing his original train of thought. "As long as Jenova's cells exist on this Planet, I can return. I can create my form anew out of their remnants. But, unfortunately, _someone_ keeps destroying the few that remain."

It took Cloud a moment to remember their conversation and realise what Sephiroth was talking about. But when he did, he couldn't help a small, self-satisfied smile. "_Good._"

Sephiroth gave a painfully hard pinch to Cloud's newly sensitive, hardened nipples, and Cloud shuddered against him with a groan.

"What I need, Cloud, is fresh blood, if you will. The next generation of Jenova's children. And you..." Sephiroth's hands slowly slid down to rest on Cloud's hips, fingertips meaningfully caressing the flesh of his lower stomach. "You are going to help me create it."

Children? Create?

...oh. Oh. Oh gods.

Cloud jerked away from the touch, the arousal that had been steadily building under Sephiroth's ministrations shattering completely in the sickening, gut-wrenching realisation of Sephiroth's intention.

"You want to... No. No way. No fucking _way!_ That's sick- that's insane, _you're_ insane. I would _never-_"

Cloud's body slammed into the ground, thrown hard enough to knock all the air out of him. He didn't have time to recover before Sephiroth was on top of him, all pretence of seduction and tenderness gone.

"You say that as if I'm giving you an option," he said with a cruel smile.

Cloud's eyes blazed. "Bastard!" he hissed, kicking out. The attack caught Sephiroth in the stomach, powerful enough to make him grunt, and Cloud pressed the advantage. Even though his movements were clumsy and sluggish from being winded, he managed to roll up onto his feet.

Some of the amusement had faded from Sephiroth's eyes now. He was growing tired of Cloud's incessant attempts to deny him, as cute as it was that he even thought he could.

Sephiroth activated the other materia in the bracer around his wrist.

_Manipulate_, Cloud realised as the spell swept over him, his body freezing beyond his control. Beyond Cloud's control, but within Sephiroth's. That _bastard_.

"Materia, Sephiroth?" he spat. "Can't fight me man to man? I didn't realise you'd become such a _coward_."

"Now, Cloud," Sephiroth said calmly, not rising to the bait at all. "You already know I am not here to fight you; you are the one who insists on perpetuating that. And," Sephiroth smirked, "I'm afraid you don't class as a man right now either."

"Fuck you!"

"That was the general idea," Sephiroth agreed in a low purr.

Cloud slammed his eyes shut as Sephiroth approached, about the only action he could still manage under the materia's influence. He didn't want to see the triumph on Sephiroth's face, the lust and desire darkening his gaze as it roamed over Cloud's helpless form. Sephiroth's hands followed the same path as his eyes, mapping out the curvature of Cloud's new body.

"_Sephiroth-" _

It was meant to be a warning, but it came out a groan.

Cloud hated himself for his weakness. Even knowing the sick intent of Sephiroth's plan, Cloud found himself succumbing so damn easily, melting completely beneath those touches. (Sephiroth's touch; he still had his gloves on, and the gentle caress of cool, aged leather against Cloud's bare arms drove him wild.)

"Y-you're insane. It's wrong, it's _sick_..."

"Do you remember, Cloud? Back when you were a cadet? You used to say you loved me in those days."

"I was an idiot," Cloud snarled. How could he forget? The memory ached.

Sephiroth chuckled, renewing his assault on Cloud. His mouth worked against Cloud's throat, leaving vivid purple-red bruises against the pale skin, and Cloud tilted his head back in offering for him. He couldn't even tell if the movement was a result of the manipulate materia or his own weakness; the result was the same either way.

"You used to say that you wanted us to be together..."

"Shut up," Cloud hissed.

Sephiroth's hands massaged Cloud's shoulders, his tongue licking along the collarbone as he slid Cloud's open top and pauldron off entirely, tossing it carelessly aside. "You wanted a family. You wanted children."

"Shut _up!_"

"You had a whole fantasy about it," Sephiroth mocked.

Cloud didn't want to hear this.

"Why?" he interrupted. "Why even bother with me? Couldn't you just find an _actual _woman?"

Sephiroth paused, drawing back to appraise the panting blond. "I will not have the heir to Jenova's legacy be born to any mere mortal. You are the most powerful human on this Planet; the only one who has ever bested me. You are the only one I would consider worthy."

As if it was some kind of _honour_. But Sephiroth was sincere, and when Cloud met his eyes he found honest respect.

Or something. Who knew what went on in Sephiroth's twisted mind.

Sephiroth caressed Cloud's cheek as he looked down again in disgust, and Cloud wished he could turn his face away. "Come now, Cloud. This doesn't have to be _bad_."

He almost laughed at how ridiculous the reassurance was.

"Follow me."

Cloud stumbled as the support of Sephiroth's body suddenly vanished. Following him was the last thing Cloud wanted to do, but he found his feet trailing after Sephiroth of their own accord, bound to Sephiroth's will by the materia.

Sephiroth led them inside one of the strange, spiralling buildings. This one was mostly intact, musty but well-preserved, even furnished with water-stained wooden benches and an aged dresser and... oh. Now Cloud understood; Sephiroth was actually taking him to bed, instead of fucking him on the floor or against a wall. How _civilised._

It was clear Sephiroth had planned this, prepared for it. The mattress wasn't rotten and water-logged like all the others that stubbornly remained in less well kept areas, and the sheets were far too fresh to have been there more than a week, never mind centuries.

Somehow the whole thing disturbed Cloud more than if Sephiroth had just taken him wherever they had happened to be.

"Strip for me," Sephiroth commanded, casually leaning back against the bed frame. The smirk playing at his lips told Cloud that Sephiroth was less interested in getting Cloud naked and more interested in enjoying his humiliation.

Cloud glared daggers, but he had no choice but to obey. His shoes came off quickly and easily, but Cloud shut his eyes after that. His own hands unfastened his pants, slowly, sensually dragging them down over his hips, but he wasn't brave enough to look at the changes the materia had wrought on his body. Being literally unmanned was bad enough, the last thing he needed was visual confirmation.

Sephiroth made a low noise of approval as the last of Cloud's clothing was tossed aside. Those powerful hands found Cloud's naked hips, grasping, and all of a sudden Cloud found himself sprawled on his back on the bed. He didn't even have time to gather his bearings before Sephiroth was hovering over him. He parted Cloud's thighs, and Cloud tensed.

"Don't!"

Sephiroth glanced up, hearing something that was genuine fear in Cloud's protest.

"Don't look."

"It's not like I haven't had you naked and writhing underneath me before, Cloud," Sephiroth purred. "What are you afraid of?"

"Yeah, but then I didn't have... girl parts."

"I see. So, Cloud Strife can face death, survive years as an experiment in Hojo's lab, defeat the most powerful warrior on the planet multiple times... but is terrified of a vagina."

Cloud bristled. "I am a _girl_ and you want to get me _pregnant_ and excuse me for being creeped the fuck out!"

Sephiroth just laughed. The next thing Cloud knew, Sephiroth's head was between his legs.

Cloud squirmed as Sephiroth's mouth teased the sensitive skin of his inner thighs, kissing and nipping and sucking. Marking him. Sephiroth had always had a thing about that, apparently. In some weird way it was reassuring to find that, even like this, there were some things that were still the same as always.

And Cloud's reaction was still the same; it made him desperate to have Sephiroth's mouth doing even dirtier things to him.

"Sephiroth..." Cloud hissed, stretching his body out to offer more of himself for those delicious kisses.

Wait. _He _stretched his body out. That hadn't been the manipulate materia, that was his own action. Sephiroth wasn't concentrating on the spell anymore. Cloud had the opportunity to fight back. If only he wanted to fight back, but Sephiroth's lips had a way of making him forget absolutely everything else. Who he was and what he was doing and all the things that Sephiroth had done.

Cloud bit his lip and moaned as Sephiroth's teeth found a particularly sensitive spot.

_Focus_.

Sephiroth was taken by surprise when Cloud's foot connected with his shoulder. There wasn't that much strength behind the kick, but enough to push Sephiroth off him. There was a touch of triumphant smugness in Cloud's grin, and Sephiroth narrowed his eyes in challenge.

In an instant Sephiroth was leant over Cloud, holding him down firmly with his body weight and pinning both of Cloud's wrists above his head with one hand. Cloud was mortified to realise that his hands had already been in the perfect position to allow Sephiroth to do so; he had placed them like that himself, just because it felt so natural. His face was already flushed pink with arousal, and the colour only darkened as embarrassment added itself to the mix.

Yet even though it would have been easy, he didn't try and break the grip.

Sephiroth's lips brushed against the shell of Cloud's ear, making him shiver. "It's cute that you still pretend you don't want this."

Sephiroth's other hand returned to where his mouth had previously been, caressing the skin of Cloud's thighs, fingernails catching on the lovebites he'd left.

Cloud froze up when Sephiroth's fingers touched his newly-formed, so-called womanhood.

"Breathe, Cloud."

Cloud did, but very shakily. It was... different. He supposed it felt kind of similar to having Sephiroth touching his dick, somehow, but more concentrated. And despite the weirdness, it felt good. Sephiroth was actually being nice enough - Sephiroth, nice, _ha_ \- to let him get used to the new sensation, rubbing in slow circles, finding the places that made Cloud gasp.

It didn't take long to get used to it. Pleasure was still pleasure, and as much of a bastard as he was, Sephiroth was far too good at providing that to Cloud.

Cloud could feel the heat building up in his face. His strange new parts felt slick and wet, and the ache between his legs was palpable. He could _feel _it, and gods that was disturbing, but at the same time he didn't even care as long as it kept feeling this good.

He needed it. He needed _something_ inside him, anything, just _now_. And Sephiroth was right there, touching, tormenting, but not giving him what he needed, and it was utterly maddening.

Cloud glowered up at him, but Sephiroth wasn't paying attention. He was much more concentrated on his current task, eyes lowered as he gauged Cloud's reactions to each touch, experimenting with the pressure, exploring.

Exploring. He was exploring - he was actually looking for something. The clit? Cloud's entrance? He didn't seem to having much luck, whatever he was doing.

"Have you ever actually been with a woman before?" Cloud snarked.

Sephiroth levelled him with a hard, offended stare, and Cloud burst into a laugh despite himself. It was a very short-lived laugh, cutting off into a choked gasp as Sephiroth found what he was looking for and slid a finger inside him.

"Oh shit..." Cloud breathed, eyes fluttering half-shut.

Sephiroth was using the same slow, exploratory strokes, only this time he was stroking Cloud from the inside. And _fuck,_ it felt amazing.

Cloud tossed his head back, teeth buried in his bottom lip. He didn't want to give Sephiroth the satisfaction of hearing him moan, but it was impossible not to. His back arched off the bed, legs trembling as he spread them wider, begging for more. Sephiroth added another finger and it only got better.

Until he stopped. It took Cloud a moment to regain his mind, laying there dazed and panting. Why would he stop?

The hand pinning Cloud's wrists down was removed, and Sephiroth drew away. Cloud was about to make a biting protest, until he heard the sound of a zipper being drawn down and the rustle of leather being removed. Oh.

Cloud propped himself up on his elbows, finally daring to look down and at his own body. He felt the difference as a painful wrench of shock. _Just materia_, he reminded himself hastily, smothering the panic before it got too much of a grip. _Easily reversible._ He had strange new curves now, pert breasts and wide hips and a mound of curly, honey-gold hair that all Cloud could see from his angle. And then Sephiroth, imposing as ever even while completely naked, settling between his spread legs.

Shit.

No matter what happened, no matter how much he tried hate him, Cloud was certain he would always have to acknowledge that Sephiroth was... incredibly attractive. An incredibly attractive _monster_, but still Cloud couldn't look away as Sephiroth lined himself up at Cloud's wet, aching opening.

Sephiroth saw him watching and smirked.

"I hate you," Cloud whispered.

"I know."

Funny how they said it almost as if it were a declaration of the opposite.

Cloud's breath caught as he felt the head of Sephiroth's cock nudge against him. Big. He always forgot how damned big Sephiroth was. He rubbed the tip against Cloud's opening, smearing the slickness there, and Cloud shivered in anticipation.

And then Sephiroth began to push inside. Cloud's hands flew up to grip Sephiroth's shoulders, fingernails digging in, and both of them groaned as Cloud was breached. From there it was easy, Sephiroth's cock sliding all the way into Cloud, claiming him. So deep.

"Oh, fuck," Cloud swore quietly, panting as he adjusted.

He wasn't sure if it was the new girl parts heightening the experience, or if it had just really been too long since he'd gotten laid, but he felt close to coming just from the penetration alone. Sephiroth felt so fucking _good _inside him.

And if Sephiroth felt good to Cloud, Cloud felt equally as amazing to Sephiroth. He braced himself on his forearms, arched above Cloud's slim form, eyes heavy-lidded with pleasure. "Mmn. You always did love taking my cock, didn't you?"

"Sh-shut up..."

It wasn't a denial. He loved this feeling, being stretched open to accept Sephiroth inside, being so _full_. Not that he would ever admit it.

Cloud could feel himself trembling, inner walls clenching around Sephiroth's cock huge and hard inside him. "Move... Gods, Seph, move!"

Sephiroth usually made a point of ignoring Cloud when he tried to command him, but that was a request he couldn't deny. He drew back slowly, savouring every inch of Cloud's body.

Cloud moaned when he pushed steadily back in.

Sephiroth repeated the action, getting a feel for the changes in Cloud's form. But he didn't speed up and Cloud made a low growl of frustration.

It wasn't enough. Slow and tender wasn't something Cloud was used to, definitely not when Sephiroth was involved. He wanted it harder, i_needed_/i it harder. That was how they always fucked, why was this time any different?

Cloud snorted at the sudden realisation. Surely not. Was Sephiroth actually trying to be _gentle_ with him? Did he think he needed to play nice just because Cloud had a female body all of a sudden? Yeah right.

Cloud knew how to play this game. He levered his hips up, twisting round and flipping Sephiroth over so _he _was the one sprawled on his back, Cloud straddling him.

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow at him.

"You're not doing it right," Cloud defended. "Don't you dare treat me like a lady."

"Oh? And how should it be done?"

Cloud braced his hands on Sephiroth's chest He raised his hips and slammed them back down, taking all of Sephiroth's cock deep and hard inside himself in one smooth movement. Cloud had never done that before, not when he had girl parts at least, and the fierce spike of pleasure combined with the raw newness of the sensation made him cry out despite himself.

"I see," Sephiroth purred in approval. "Like that."

Sephiroth settled both hands on Cloud's hips, guiding him into the rhythm he had started, deep and hard and unrelenting, and Cloud screamed.

_Yes_. This was how they were meant to do it. It didn't even feel any different any more, just _good_. Girl parts, boy parts, who even cared? Sephiroth was fucking him and it was almost too pleasurable to bear.

Cloud leant backwards, arms behind him, bracing himself as his back arched. _There_. The angle had Sephiroth hitting a perfect spot inside him.

"Sephiroth!" The cry turned into a jagged moan as Sephiroth's hips slammed up into Cloud. He could feel the heat building rapidly. His face bright with desire and arousal, the flush spreading down across his shoulders and chest. And the heat inside, right there where Sephiroth was pounding against every sensitive spot inside him.

Cloud knew he was being loud, but he was too far gone to care. Let Sephiroth hear; every gasp, every moan, every scream.

Sephiroth was usually quiet, never opening up, never losing control even when intimate. But this time Cloud heard him. Low purrs and guttural noises of restrained pleasure that only turned Cloud on even more.

It took effort to open his eyes and focus, but Cloud wanted to see Sephiroth as well. Only Cloud couldn't meet Sephiroth's eyes, because Sephiroth wasn't looking as high as Cloud's face. Cloud's blush turned to one of embarrassment as he realised his position was thrusting his chest and its new assests out almost obscenely, pronoucning the way his breasts would bounce with every thrust and roll of his hips.

And Sephiroth was staring at them.

"Hey!" Cloud pushed himself back upright, breaking their rhythm in order to wrap an arm around his chest, covering himself as best he could.

Sephiroth chuckled. He took Cloud's wrist, pulling his arm away from his chest and dragging Cloud down so he was almost lying on top of him. "You are gorgeous. In any form."

Cloud didn't know how to process that. A compliment. No sarcasm, no barbs, just a compliment. From Sephiroth. ...About the fact he had breasts, which slightly ruined the moment, but Cloud would take what he could get.

Luckily, Sephiroth saved Cloud from having to reply by claiming his mouth. The kiss was brief and hot and impatient. As soon as they broke apart, gasping for breath, Sephiroth pushed Cloud back up into his original position on top of him. His hands found their grip on Cloud's hips again, and he shot Cloud a wicked grin as he resumed ravaging him.

Cloud's brow furrowed in tortured pleasure. Their brief interlude hadn't given him time to catch his breath at all, the blood still pounding in his ears, and he knew he wouldn't be able to last much longer. He could feel the pleasure spiralling up to a release. So damn close, and he just needed to...

Cloud's hand flew down between his legs, only to freeze when he found the unfamiliar terrain.

Sephiroth huffed a laugh at the bewildered expression on Cloud's face. "Would you like some help?" he offered with a touch of sarcasm.

Cloud was too frustrated to even be offended. So _close_, and if he'd still been in his own body he knew it would have only taken a few tight, delicious strokes on his dick to reach an earth-shattering orgasm. "How do girls even come?" he hissed, squirming with need on Sephiroth's cock.

Sephiroth didn't reply directly - Cloud strongly suspected Sephiroth had no more clue than he did - but wrapped an arm around Cloud's waist, and in one swift movement flipped their positions. Cloud shrieked, then immediately covered his mouth with his hand, mortified that he was capable of making such a girlish sound.

Sephiroth smirked. "Let's see if we can find out."

Cloud was on his back again now, hips raised up off the bed. Sephiroth had one of Cloud's legs hooked into the crook of Sephiroth's elbow. His other leg found it's way around Sephiroth's waist, drawing him closer, deeper, until Cloud could feel every inch of him inside. Cloud's arms wrapped around Sephiroth's shoulders as he leaned over him.

"There..." Cloud breathed.

Sephiroth obliged. His thrusts were just as powerful as before, but shallower, staying in deep, grinding against that spot inside Cloud that made him tremble with pleasure. The new position had Sephiroth's hips pressed flush against Cloud's, pressing against him in the most incredibly stimulating way.

Cloud's eyes were glazed over with lust, reddened lips parted as he panted heavily. Too tempting. Sephiroth took Cloud's bottom lip between his teeth, biting down lightly. Cloud shuddered. Sephiroth moved down to Cloud's throat and bit down hard, hard enough to leave vivid red imprints of broken skin, and that was it.

Cloud's hands fisted into Sephiroth's hair. "Se-Seph!" he cried out brokenly, gasping as release washed over him. Spasms shook through his whole body, centred around his lower abdomen. He could feel the inner walls there contracting, clenching around the hard flesh inside as though his body never wanted to let it leave.

Sephiroth grunted, teeth gritted. He'd been holding back, trying to ignore the heat, the tightness, trying to draw it out. But having Cloud trembling around him, almost painfully tight as he came... it was almost too much. Sephiroth stilled himself completely. _Not yet._

Cloud was grateful for that. The pleasure felt almost too much, and any more would have been unbearable. And it wasn't stopping. He was used to reaching a peak, and that was it. He came back down again. But this... the intensity gradually lessened, but his whole body still felt electrified with euphoria.

Sephiroth shot him a heated, predatory look. "My turn."

Cloud didn't have time to catch his breath before Sephiroth was pounding into him again. It was for his own pleasure this time. He took Cloud how _he_ wanted; faster, not even bothering to aim for any sensitive spots any more. When he did unwittingly hit them, it was like star bursts behind Cloud's eyes.

It didn't take long. Sephiroth had been on the edge already, and there was no more reason to hold back. Cloud was bent almost double underneath him now, panting and writhing, his nails carving deep red scratches down Sephiroth's back. Perfect.

Sephiroth shuddered to a halt, eyes clenching shut, and Cloud could feel his cock pulsing inside him as he came. It was so easy to imagine the hot, wet stickiness of Sephiroth's come spurting inside him, marking him from the inside, filling him up. The thought sent a whole new shudder of pleasure coursing through him.

Sephiroth didn't pull out even after he had softened, moving with Cloud as they both sank back into the bedding. They lay in silence, too spent to do anything else, letting pounding heartbeats slow and gasping breaths even out.

It could have - _should_ have - been pleasant. It should have been perfect. Cloud felt heavy and relaxed and utterly content in the wake of an amazing orgasm, with the warm, comforting weight of another body pressed close on top of his.

Except that that body was Sephiroth. And that changed things.

Cloud sighed. He hardened his expression, wiping the stupid, content smile off his face.

"Alright, you've had your fun. Get off," Cloud growled, shoving Sephiroth up with both hands.

Sephiroth did lift himself off of Cloud, but only enough so he could prop himself up on his elbows. He smirked down at him. "I don't think you quite understand. One good fuck isn't enough."

"...what do you mean?"

"I'm sure you are aware of the basics of reproduction, Cloud. A female body is not always fertile, and we have no way of knowing which part of a woman's cycle the transformation put your body in. Even if you were conveniently at a fertile phase, one release doesn't guarantee conception."

"Oh gods," Cloud groaned, covering his face. He didn't need to hear Sephiroth talk about this.

"So, Cloud, I'm afraid you're not going anywhere." One of his hands trailed down Cloud's side, settling possessively on his hip. "We're going to be doing this again. Every single day."

"Sephiroth-" Cloud squirmed. This was _supposed _to be the part where they got up and continued trying to kill each other. It didn't look like that was happening any time soon.

"Every single day, over and over."

Cloud could feel the heat beginning to rise into his face again. "I don't-"

"Until you're so filled up with my come that you feel like you could burst."

"_Seph!_"

"Until my child - _our_ child - is growing inside you. And then I'll fuck you again, just for the fun of it."

It should not be turning him on to have Sephiroth say those things to him. It really, really shouldn't. But _fuck_ it was.

Apparently, the idea turned Sephiroth on as well. Cloud could feel him growing hard again inside him, and his inner walls clenched in response around the stiffening flesh. They both moaned softly.

Sephiroth's mouth widened into a predatory grin. "Shall we start now?"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** I've kinda been debating writing a second chapter for this for aaaaages. I've certainly had ideas for what I want to put in it, but most of those ideas were just little snippets of conversation between Sephiroth and Cloud.

So, that's basically what this sequel is. Not much actually happens, but there's a lot of bantering between the two, and a bit more smut. I still need practice at writing het smut, but it is getting a little bit easier. Only a little, though. (I might have cheated and glossed over a lot.) Ah well, maybe after I've written twenty het fics it'll be as easy as I find writing yaoi. XP Practice makes perfect!

Even though Cloud has a girl body currently, he was a guy originally in this AU and still thinks of himself as a guy, so the pronouns are still going to be he/him/his. (I know it's been a while since the first chapter, so just a reminder in case anyone jumps straight into this second chapter and gets confused!)

As usual, these two morons can't decide if they're lovers or enemies. A lot of the time they're almost quite cute together in this... and then Sephiroth goes all manipulative and idek. Well, these two are never exactly a healthy relationship.

**Warnings:** smut, cunnilingus, mentions of abortion. Cloud is still genderswapped.

* * *

Cloud knew something was wrong the moment he actually won a sparring match against Sephiroth.

Sephiroth had a lifetime of training and was undeniably more technically skilled than Cloud would ever be. When Cloud won, it was because he had desperation and a need to save the entire planet on his side. A simple, inconsequential sparring match? Sephiroth won. Every time.

Except for this time, apparently.

"Alright. What's wrong with you?"

Sephiroth chuckled lowly as he got to his feet. It was only partially the elegant rise Sephiroth normally used, and partially an actual struggle. He almost stumbled for a moment before straightening up as if nothing had happened. "Why do you assume something is wrong?"

Apart from actually having to make an effort to stand? "Because you lost."

"Maybe I was just going easy on you."

"Nope. Not buying it." Cloud leant his Fusion Swords up against one of the nearby shell-like buildings (they had accidentally carved a huge gash into the side of it during their spar) and crossed his arms. "When you go easy on someone, you hold back enough to allow them a fair fight. You never just _let_ them win."

A small flash of irritation crossed Sephiroth's face. He unhurriedly brushed the dust and dirt off his leather coat, acting as though none of Cloud's questions bothered him in the slightest. "Perhaps I misjudged, and held back too much on account of your current condition," he suggested off-handedly.

Cloud growled. "Just because I'm still stuck in a female body and am mildly pregnant does not mean I can't kick your ass. I just _did_."

"Because I let you."

"Still not buying it. Something's up."

Sephiroth huffed a laugh. Cloud was persistent, and he wasn't sure whether it was irritating or endearing. "Why? You make it sound as though you care."

Well, that shut Cloud up, at least. He just kept his arms crossed, that adorable, pouting frown tugging at his lips. Sephiroth smirked.

"This body is degrading," Sephiroth said nonchalantly.

"...what?"

"This body is not my original, as I'm sure you realise. It is a construct made of Jenova cells overlaid with my genetic code. However, since most of the original Jenova cells have been destroyed" - he gave Cloud a pointed look - "I could not gather enough to create a permanent form. This one is only temporary, and is now weakening as you have so astutely noted."

"You mean... you're _dying?" _Cloud was quiet now, staring at him with his face a tangled mess of emotions. One of those emotions looked far too much like pity.

"Yes," Sephiroth confirmed brusquely. Cloud needed to _stop looking at him like that._ "This body was only ever intended as temporary. That is why it was so important that I have you. Reproducing genetic material was not just a fancy, Cloud. It is a necessity if I am to continue existing with any kind of physical form. I have already spent too long with you."

He turned away and busied himself with wiping down and re-sheathing Masamune, ignoring whatever else Cloud felt the need to add.

He knew he had indeed spent too long with Cloud. Too long was something coming close to four months, now. Though it was hard to tell when the City of the Ancients was their more-or-less permanent home; the days all tended blended into one there.

Sephiroth vanished fairly regularly. Cloud assumed he went to a town somewhere, because he often came back with food and supplies for them. Other times he came back smelling of mako and monster blood.

As for Cloud, he whiled away his days with whatever tasks he could dream up. He had fixed up most of the houses, paying particular attention to the one they had adopted as their home. He spent a lot of time with Fenrir, whether tinkering with the bike's mechanics or riding through the wilderness just to clear his thoughts. He had effectively annihilated the entire population of monsters in the immediate area in various fits of misdirected rage (the real target was Sephiroth, but often he wasn't there to spar with).

Cloud had also discovered that slowly going through the motions of his swordwork katas helped calm him down and take his mind off things when he was feeling nauseous. Sephiroth had taught him some new ones.

Every so often they tried to kill each other, but that was only to be expected. They fucked a lot as well. The two went hand-in-hand most of the time.

And somehow four months had passed that way, without either of them noticing. While not exactly _happy_ with the situation, Cloud was more or less used to being in his female form. Or he would have been, if it didn't keep changing on him. Cloud had just got used to the feel of having breasts, of the weight of them, the way they fit so well in the palms of Sephiroth's hands, how sensitive they were when Sephiroth rolled his nipples between his fingers. And then all of a sudden they started getting fuller and even more sensitive, to the point of being painfully tender.

He got randomly exhausted at stupid times and felt like throwing up, though thankfully that wasn't quite so bad anymore. And he got the weirdest cravings. He refused to tell Sephiroth that, though, even though trying to ignore them was a painful task. But Cloud was _not _about to ask the world's enemy to go and fetch him a bucket of cheese sticks and spicy wings and chocolate sauce to smother the first two with.

And worst of all. Just a week or two ago the constant bloating and pressure he'd been constantly, vaguely aware of feeling in his abdomen had become visible. It was just the slightest extra curve to a body that already had way more curves than Cloud was used to, but it felt like the final nail in the coffin.

He was undeniably pregnant. Oh, and Sephiroth was the father. What was his fucking life.

(He'd run out of monsters to kill by that point, so he went and slaughtered some innocent trees instead. Something had needed to die.)

Something needed to die again now. Cloud followed Sephiroth inside their house, fingers twitching for the blade he had left outside, refusing to be brushed off after what Sephiroth had just revealed to him. "What does that mean, then? You're leaving?"

"I will not remain here to simply rot, Cloud. This body is dying, and I have no intention of remaining in it as it slowly deteriorates. I will abandon it soon enough."

Cloud was seething. "You _asshole_. Did you think this through at all? What the hell am _I_ supposed to do? You'rethe one who was so damn insistent on getting me pregnant, and now you're just gonna up and leave me like this?"

"It's not as though I have a choice. I will continue to degrade whether I wish to or not," Sephiroth stated, frowning. It was simply logic, an emotionless decision based on the facts available. At least, it was to Sephiroth's mind. So he was startled to find wet trails of tears beginning to mark Cloud's cheeks. "...you're crying."

"I'm _not _crying. It's this stupid body. It has pregnancy hormones and shit. I can assure you that in my head I am perfectly calm and collected and maybe pissed off as hell, but I am not crying."

Sephiroth had never been gifted in the art of tactful emotional navigation, and a crying woman was more than he was capable of comprehending. He clearly had been spending far too long around Cloud, though. That was evidenced by the fact that he felt almost guilty about his inability to console Cloud, instead of casually dismissing such irrelevant displays of emotion as he certainly would have with anyone else.

"I... apologise, Cloud," Sephiroth attempted. He cupped Cloud's cheek in one hand, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb.

Cloud snorted rudely and rolled his eyes. "It only counts as being sorry if you wouldn't do it again."

Cloud had a point. If in the same circumstances again, Sephiroth would not hesitate to take Cloud as the one to bear his child, even knowing he would have to leave him to fend for himself in that condition.

"Then I regret that circumstances dictate that I must abandon you. I would stay if I could."

Cloud sighed heavily and shoved Sephiroth away, wiping his own tears away with the back of his hand. It was such a dumb thing to get worked up over anyway. Of course Sephiroth was going to leave at some point. What the hell did Cloud think they were doing? Playing happy families? Sephiroth was a bastard and a murderer and was only using him to make sure he could come back and terrorise the planet more in the future. He set his face into a scowl.

Then his eyes widened again as a thought occurred to him. "I could stop this..." Cloud began suddenly. "If you're not around. There's nothing to stop me aborting the damn parasite and getting my real body back."

Sephiroth shucked off his leather coat, which was a little too warm and uncomfortable after the effort he'd had to make during their spar, and settled back onto the sofa. "You could do that," he acknowledged.

"You said it yourself; it this doesn't work, that's it. No more Jenova cells, no more genetic material. You can't come back." Cloud grew more and more agitated as he worked the logic through. "No more burning villages or murdering people or trying to _annihilate the entire planet_. How many people have you killed, Sephiroth? How many have died? How many more would be killed if you came back again?" His voice went quiet. "If I got rid of it... how many lives would I save?"

"Thousands," Sephiroth suggested.

"I'm fucking serious! I could stop you, stop all of this. It would be the right thing to do."

"It probably would."

"You would be dead. For real. Forever."

Sephiroth nodded.

"So why the hell don't you _care?!" _Cloud finally burst.

Sephiroth reached forward to take Cloud's wrist, pulling him onto the sofa with him. Cloud ended up straddling Sephiroth's thighs, still shaking slightly as he was held tight against Sephiroth's chest.

"Because you don't want me dead, my Cloud," Sephiroth said softly, smirking, letting the words ghost against Cloud's jaw. "I know how much it hurts you, every time you have to kill me. How it breaks your pathetic little heart. How it would break your heart even more if you killed that child. Your child, Cloud. Yours and mine. You want to keep it."

The manipulative _bastard_.

"I should abort the damn thing," Cloud hissed.

"You should. But you won't."

"Fuck you. Fuck _you!_ Why do you always do this shit to me?" Cloud could feel the tears started to well up again, spilling out even after he slammed his eyes shut to ward them off. He swiped at them angrily. "And fuck this stupid pregnant girl body, too! Ugh."

Sephiroth waited until Cloud had calmed down, running a hand gently up and down the length of his spine in something that was probably intended as a soothing gesture. It would have been a nicer thing to do if he hadn't just been manipulating Cloud's emotions to get exactly the reaction he wanted.

Cloud sank into the embrace despite himself.

"So, what are you going to do?" Sephiroth asked once Cloud's breathing had evened out again.

"About what?"

"I don't like the idea of you staying here on your own, especially once you're heavily pregnant. It's too far from anywhere if you need help."

Cloud snorted. "Like you care."

"What about going back to your friends?"

"No!"

Cloud said it so adamantly and so immediately that Sephiroth blinked in surprise.

"I can't... let anyone see me like this," Cloud continued by way of explanation, a little sheepish at his reaction. "I mean, I know they wouldn't really care. I'd never hear the end of it, but they wouldn't... well, we've all been through some shit together, and some weird shit at that. If we can get turned into _frogs_, of all things, by random wildlife in Gongaga, swapping genders is hardly so unthinkable. They'd handle it."

"But...?" Sephiroth prompted.

Cloud sighed. "They'd ask who's kid it is, and I can't tell them that." He shook his head. "Tifa, especially. She hates you the way that I _should_. But I don't want to lie to them either. What the fuck would I even say?"

"I see. So, instead you're just going to run away and ignore them for nine months."

Cloud frowned. "I'm not..."

"Yes, you are. That is exactly what you're doing."

"Shut up. Who are you to talk? You never even had any friends."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. It was a weak shot, but one that struck home. And while he was certain he had once had a friend or two at some point - his memories after being brought back from the Lifestream twice were a little hazy, especially irrelevant ones like his life in ShinRa - he was also certain they were all dead now.

"What about food and supplies?" Sephiroth questioned, changing the subject. He didn't care one iota for Cloud's friends; if Cloud wanted to neglect them, that was his prerogative. But he did currently have personal investment in Cloud's wellbeing.

"I can go to Bone Village for anything I need," Cloud shrugged. "It's not that far, just through the Forest. I've already cleared out all the monsters. And I'm less likely to be recognised there; most of the archaeologists wouldn't even look at me unless I'd been excavated from the ground." He gave a small smile, but Sephiroth ignored his attempt at a joke.

"Mmhm. And what about medical facilities and a doctor for when you go into labour?"

Cloud suddenly went very still and very tense in Sephiroth's arms. He paused for a long moment. "Wait. Labour?"

"That _is _what happens at the end of most pregnancies. How did you think the child was coming out?"

"You mean... I have to give birth," Cloud stated, very quietly. He looked a little shell-shocked.

"Did you not realise that?"

"No. No, that horrific thought had not yet occurred to me, thank you."

Sephiroth couldn't help it. He laughed.

"Shut the hell up!" Cloud scowled at him. "If you think it's so damn funny, why don't you be the one to carry the kid? You've still got the genderswap materia. Change us around. I'll fuck you as much as you want until you get pregnant."

Sephiroth gave Cloud an amused smile."I'm afraid that wouldn't work, Cloud. This body is already degrading, you recall. The added strain of supporting another life would only cause its condition to deteriorate faster. It would never reach term."

Cloud let his head fall against Sephiroth's chest in defeat. His voice turned monotone. "Fine. Since you're not going to be around at the time, I just want to say now that I really fucking hate you. I hate you so much. This is all your fault, and as soon as you come back I am going to kill you again. You bastard."

Sephiroth pressed a kiss to the top of Cloud's head. He was fucking adorable. Then he tilted Cloud's head up and kissed his lips as well.

Cloud melted. Sephiroth's lips were warm and insistent against his own, and Sephiroth wrapped an arm around Cloud's waist to pull him in close as the kiss deepened. He slowly tasted every inch of Cloud's mouth until Cloud was trembling.

"Mnn... stop that," Cloud gasped when he was finally allowed up for air. "I'm not finished being horrified and hating you yet."

"Allow me to take your mind off both," Sephiroth said smoothly, kissing Cloud's knuckles.

Cloud used his knuckles to kiss Sephiroth's face.

Sephiroth started, much more with surprise than any real pain. Cloud had just _punched him_. Cloud looked a little surprised himself, but then his face split into a wide grin.

"Little minx," Sephiroth growled. He flipped their positions so that Cloud was the one pressed against the sofa, although laid out against it this time, and Sephiroth was the one straddling him. He pinned Cloud's wrists on either side of his head.

"You can't just distract me with sex!" Cloud protested.

"Actually, I can. It's very effective." He leant down and kissed Cloud again. And for all his protests, Cloud kissed back with equal enthusiasm.

"N-no," Cloud insisted when his mouth was finally free to talk again. "You turned me into a girl, got me pregnant, are now abandoning me like this, and also apparently I'm going to have to give birth. I am not happy."

"Mm. So you say."

Sephiroth moved Cloud's wrists to pin them both with one hand, while the other slid up underneath Cloud's top. Sephiroth cupped one of Cloud's breasts, kneading softly, and Cloud arched into the touch.

"Ahh..." Cloud breathed, before remembering he was still supposed to be protesting. It took him a second to remember his thoughts. "Some random doctor is going to have to be looking up my girl parts. This is _not okay_."

"They're nice parts," Sephiroth smirked.

"That is really not the point-" Cloud rolled his eyes, but was cut off into a choked moan as Sephiroth pressed his hips against Cloud's, putting just the right amount of pressure on said girl parts.

"Nng!" Cloud could feel Sephiroth's erection, half-hard and just beginning to strain the fabric of his leather trousers, and it made him squirm with need. Sephiroth was right about sex being a very effective distraction.

Sephiroth stopped fondling Cloud for long enough to unzip Cloud's top, splaying it open to reveal the delicious swell of Cloud's breasts. He ran his hand all the way down Cloud's front. Cloud's breath caught when Sephiroth stopped over his belly. The bump wasn't big yet, but it was noticeably there. And Sephiroth's hand was on it, mapping out the new curves.

"Mine," Sephiroth declared quietly, and Cloud wasn't sure what to make of it. The edge to Sephiroth's voice was cold and possessive, and it raised the hairs on the back of Cloud's neck. He sometimes forgot that Sephiroth's sanity was a nebulous, unreliable thing.

Sephiroth's hand thankfully didn't linger, and instead continued its journey lower to unzip Cloud's trousers. Cloud lifted his hips to allow Sephiroth to pull them off.

"Keep your hands there," Sephiroth instructed as he let go of Cloud's wrists. Cloud obligingly kept them crossed above his head, not minding it in the slightest. He liked the position. Sephiroth had noted with some amusement that Cloud even slept like that sometimes.

He slid his hands down Cloud's side, making Cloud shiver. Cloud barely even needed the prompting to spread his legs. "Good, Cloud," Sephiroth hummed, pressing little butterfly kisses to Cloud's inner thigh.

Sephiroth had had plenty of time to perfect the art of pleasuring Cloud's female body by now. He licked a long, teasing line over Cloud's entrance and up to tongue his clit, and Cloud arched up, hissing with pleasure. He forgot his instructions to stay put, tangling a fist into Sephiroth's hair as Sephiroth proceeded to work him over with his mouth.

"Nng... Seph, Gaia, mmn," Cloud gasped. Sephiroth was damn good with his tongue, sending electric fissions of heat burning through Cloud's lower stomach. He could feel the emptiness like a warm, throbbing ache between his legs. "I need... you, inside. Something, anything, please."

Sephiroth smirked. He moved his mouth lower, and it was his tongue that probed against the soft folds of flesh.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud wailed, moaning at the pleasurable sensation. He trembled and gasped as Sephiroth's tongue pressed in to stroke him from the inside. It didn't help that he felt more sensitive than he ever had originally, what with the way the pregnancy was effecting his body. "Shit... Seph, I'm... I'm seriously gonna come if you keep that up."

Cloud should have known better than to say something like that. Sephiroth only took it as a challenge.

Sephiroth tongue-fucked Cloud as he writhed on the sofa beneath him, one hand splayed across Cloud's chest to hold him relatively in place. The other hand Sephiroth used to toy with Cloud's clit, only increasing the volume and pitch of his moans.

"Se-seph!" Cloud cried, squeezing his hands into fists as he tried to hold himself back from the inevitable.

Sephiroth lifted his head and kissed at Cloud's thighs again. "You can come, Cloud." Then his tongue was tormenting Cloud in the best ways possible again, and Cloud let out a high, keening moan.

Cloud's whole body tensed, trembling as the waves of pleasure broke over him. His inner muscles clenched down. Sephiroth replaced his tongue with fingers, stroking Cloud through his orgasm until his gasping breaths became even again.

He was still breathing heavily, face flushed a brilliant pink, but Cloud managed to give Sephiroth a seductive smile. "I want your cock as well," he purred.

"Oh? Perhaps we should move this to the bed."

Cloud was happy to comply. They lost the last of their clothing along the way; Cloud's top that was only half-on to begin with, and Sephiroth's trousers. He was fully hard underneath them, the tip of his cock already beaded with precome.

They fucked twice, Cloud's legs locked around Sephiroth's waist as Sephiroth thrust deep inside him, all stinging, biting kisses and groping hands. Sephiroth was careful not to take Cloud as hard as he had originally, on their first few weeks when he'd been set of impregnating him in the first place. But still hard enough to make it exciting for him, and Cloud's loud moans and cries were proof of his enjoyment.

They ended up tangled together beneath the sheets afterwards. Cloud was thoroughly exhausted from sparring with Sephiroth, followed by copious amounts of sex. He probably should have been taking it a bit easier, but he always dismissed the concern whenever Sephiroth brought it up. He wasn't some fragile little doll all of a sudden.

Cloud drifted somewhere between wakefulness and sleep, his body thoroughly satisfied. He could Sephiroth's warmth pressed against him, hear the beat of his heart. Sephiroth kissed him. Almost tenderly, but maybe Cloud was just dreaming that, because out of all the different kisses they had ever shared, tenderness was not one of them.

Sephiroth's fingers ran across Cloud's stomach. "I can hear its heartbeat," he whispered to Cloud. Cloud was half-asleep, too tired to do anything but smile in return; he didn't even remember Sephiroth saying it come morning.

He was gone by the time Cloud woke up. That wasn't unusual. Sephiroth vanished off most days. But this time, after everything he'd said, Cloud felt a weight settle in the pit of his stomach.

This time Sephiroth wasn't coming back for him.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Yeah, I totally agree with you guys. The second/sequel chapter didn't wrap the story up much at all - it only left it more open than before, really - and I didn't like leaving it just hanging there. So here's a third chapter. :D And hopefully the last now; I've tried to tie it all up a lot better in this one!

I have to say, as bad as Seph and Cloud are at not having thought through the whole situation... I'm equally as guilty. This originally started out as a kink meme one-shot, so it was sort of given that the glaringly problematic issues would be glossed over. 'Cause, y'know, kink meme prompt. Buuuut then it gets a few extra chapters and starting drifting away from it's PWP beginnings, and suddenly there's a bunch of stuff that really should've been addressed but hasn't been because whoops I totally did not plan for this to happen. For a start, the whole pregnancy is some creepy-as-shit body horror for Cloud if you stop to think about it too long. Eugh. So, yeah. Sorry. I'm kinda trash. orz

I still wanted to give them a happy ending, since I'm a stupid romantic bubblehead at heart, but it was kinda difficult to balance that with how fucked up their relationship is. orz;;; I get mood whiplash trying to write these two morons from chapter to chapter. Do they hate each other or are they secretly in love? No one fucking knows. They sure don't.

There is some super glossed over/mostly skipped baby birthings, and then this chapter is mostly a lot of sap to make up for the sad one previously. XP

Names are hard, I don't have time to work that shit out.

Also, did you want a lesson in Jenovian biology? Well, Sephiroth is going to give you one whether you like it or not.

* * *

Cloud had accused Sephiroth of not thinking things through before beginning this whole ridiculous plan of his. Sure, it _sounded _simple enough. Turn Cloud into a girl, fuck him in his new female body, get him pregnant, and nine months later there would be a new generation of Jenova's bloodline with the genetics of the two most powerful humans on the planet.

But then there were the details. Like how nine months was a long time to be stuck in a body that wasn't Cloud's own. Like how neither of them had considered the fact that Cloud's clothes wouldn't fit over the large, disturbing bump that he was sporting. Like the fact there was nothing for the baby when it arrived; he needed formula to feed it, clothes, diapers, who knew what else.

Sephiroth hadn't considered any of that. And... neither had Cloud.

He'd spent the last month and a half cursing both himself and Sephiroth. But it was Cloud himself who was the one who had refused to leave the City of the Ancients until it was too late to do so. He was too heavily pregnant to be riding Fenrir now, not to mention the clothing situation. On one of his last visits to Bone Village, he had managed to snag a men's shirt that was almost ten times too big for him. It was the only thing that fit now, dropping low enough to hit just a few inches above Cloud's knees. Which was just as well, since trousers were out of the question. His original pair had no chance of fitting, and Bone Village was such a small little town that there had been zero chance of finding actual maternity clothes anywhere. There was no way he could anywhere public like that. At least he'd managed to gather a pretty massive stockpile of food before that mistake became apparent.

So Cloud stayed in the City of the Ancients, lingering like a ghost amongst the ruins. Each day the dread in the back of his mind gained more weight, because each day drew closer to the fact the baby was going to have to come out. And Cloud was alone and with no idea what to do.

Great. Just fucking _great_. It was true that maybe the situation wouldn't have been quite so bad if he'd actually gone back to civilisation, but that didn't stop him blaming Sephiroth for _everything_. Goddamn fucking Sephiroth.

Cloud missed him so much more than he should have.

He'd spent a lot of time trying to figure out what exactly Sephiroth was plotting, never quite able to figure out just how sane his Silver Demon was by this point. The whole point of this pregnancy was to create a new generation... a 'heir to Jenova's legacy', Sephiroth had said. But he also implied he would be able to regain his own body through the process. Which was it? Both? How would that even work?

Sephiroth had been right when he had said that having to kill him broke Cloud's heart. Every time. But Cloud would kill him again with more fury than ever if Sephiroth planned any harm to their child. Using the baby's cells, letting him grow up only to then possess his body... Cloud's imagination conjured up plenty of nightmare scenarios.

He wasn't going let that happen.

But, of course, the biggest imminent threat to both of their existences wasn't Sephiroth. It was Cloud's own ignorance. If something went wrong with the delivery... Cloud sighed heavily, hiding his face in his hands. He'd been over that thought a million times already, and it was the same conclusion every time. He had no idea what to do.

He'd slowly picked his communication back up, sending messages to Tifa in particular, hoping for the day he'd have the courage to ask her how to deliver a baby, and hoping she would have a better idea than he did. At least she was in a better position to look the information up someone, or find someone who could help more.

He still didn't have to courage to pick up the phone and talk in person, though.

He didn't have the courage to do it when he felt the baby shift, or when he felt the muscles in his abdomen begin to tighten. It was only when the contractions began to get painful that he finally dialled the number in desperation.

"_Cloud."_ It was less a greeting, and more an accusation. And Gaia, Cloud deserved it. He'd left them for nine months, with only a handful of vague texts to let Tifa and the kids know he was alive. He would accept every single lecture (Marlene was the worst for those, and Denzel would give him those kicked puppy eyes) but Cloud didn't have time to feel guilty right at that moment.

"Tifa!" he interrupted urgently. The panic and fear must have been blatantly obvious in his voice, because she quietened with no further admonitions. Tifa could always keep her head in an emergency. "...I need to know how to deliver a baby. Like, right now."

"A baby?" she questioned.

"Don't ask," Cloud said, through gritted teeth. Another contraction was coming on, and he really hadn't wanted to test his ability to talk through the pain. Shit.

"Are you with someone? Is she alright? Where are you?"

Cloud tried to relay only the quickest, most relevant information. "Middle of nowhere. No medical equipment or outside help. I... she's in labour."

"How long? Has her water broken?"

"...water?"

"The amniotic sac. It should just be like fluid coming out of her vagina."

Cloud closed his eyes, thankful that Tifa was being brusque and professional in response to the urgency of the situation. It made it slightly easier to hear about. But not by much. "Y-yeah."

"How long between the contractions?"

"Maybe... seven or eight minutes? It's been like that for about an hour."

"Okay. Can you hold on a sec?" Tifa's voice vanished from the phone, and Cloud heard her distantly calling. It sounded like she was talking to one of the kids. She was a little calmer when she returned; certainly a hell of a lot calmer than Cloud felt. "You've got a bit of time. The birth could take up to ten to twenty hours yet, if she's a first time mum."

"_Twenty hours?!" _Cloud repeated in horror.

"Denzel's going to fetch a doctor or midwife from the clinic. They'll be able to talk you through it a lot better than I can. Just make sure she's comfortable for now and keep everything calm."

He let out a pained groan and muttered something obscene.

* * *

Cloud was quite certain he would have preferred to have been stabbed through by Masamune again. Multiple times. At least that was over quickly.

Still, it could have been worse. There were no complications, and - _apparently _\- twelve hours was a good time. But it was over, and thanked every deity he'd ever even remotely heard of for that. He could finally, fucking _finally_, get his own body back. Sephiroth had left him the genderswitch materia (and Cloud wasn't sure if that was a gesture of trust, or if Sephiroth was just being a smug bastard and displaying his absolute conviction of Cloud's compliance.)

Except that Cloud couldn't even do that, because suddenly he had a baby and nothing to feed it. The female body solved that problem, so it seemed he was stuck with it for a while longer. He was changing back the _second_ he got to a town that sold baby formula though.

But for all that... he had a son. Cloud still started every time he heard those cries, as if his mind couldn't quite comprehend that this was a thing that had actually happened. The baby seemed healthy enough; he certainly had a good pair of lungs.

Cloud found himself staring constantly at the tiny thing. He couldn't tell what colour the little wisps of hair were yet - pale, definitely, but was it a silver pale or bright blond pale? The baby's eyes were a mix of both of his parents, a rich blue-green that was lighter around the pupil. The normal, rounded pupil. He didn't share Sephiroth's cat-slit eyes; the Jenova eyes. It was too much to hope that he would be completely free of her influence, but that one small reassurance made Cloud happier that he could have imagined.

He might have cried a little over that, out of sheer relief.

Cloud still found himself lingering in the City of the Ancients. But it was a pleasant sort of lingering, compared to the months of silence and gnawing fear. Cloud talked out loud, his voice sounding unfamiliar and warm to his own ears, and he smiled and he laughed. A baby wasn't much of a conversation partner, but Cloud was more than content with the gurgles and little noises he got back.

It was too fucking cute.

He started to think about going back. Taking a baby on a motorbike would be difficult, but Cloud thought he could make some sort of baby-carrying sling to wrap around the both of them, holding the kid close, safe against Cloud's chest while Cloud drove slowly and extremely carefully. From Bone Village he could find other transport to Edge; maybe he could even see if Cid was around to give both him and Fenrir a lift in the Highwind.

Cloud wanted to look after his child himself, he was dead set on that. But... he could a use a little help. In all honesty, he didn't know much at all about looking after a baby, and actually being able to get a decent night's sleep once in a while would be wonderful. If he returned to Tifa in Edge, it would just be like bringing another orphan into the rag-tag family. Cloud wondered what Marlene and Denzel would think of having a baby brother and smiled to himself.

Except he couldn't go back yet. There was one loose end still; Sephiroth. Cloud didn't know when or how or if he was coming back. If Cloud was in Edge when Sephiroth came searching for his son, there were a lot of innocents there that could get caught in the crossfire if things went badly.

Realistically, Cloud couldn't know when Sephiroth would turn up. But his instincts told him to wait. Or maybe it was less instinct and more Sephiroth's uncanny, Jenova-flavoured ability to get inside his head.

Cloud waited.

He felt it the instant Sephiroth returned, six days after the birth of their child. The awareness of his presence bled into every cell in Cloud's body, thrumming with knowing. He could feel the rhythm of Sephiroth's heartbeat, taste his energy, so similar to the connection they had shared when Jenova was at her height.

Cloud held his son tight against his chest protectively, though he couldn't immediately sense any malice in Sephiroth's intent. His swords were within arms reach.

Sephiroth's presence closed in on them.

Cloud didn't show the slightest sign of surprise when Sephiroth appeared in the sky just behind him, hovering with his wing outstretched like a descending archangel.

Cloud rolled his eyes, but inwardly his heart skipped a beat. Maybe several. "Would you stop being so damn melodramatic?"

Sephiroth gracefully landed in front of Cloud and allowed the wing to feather away into the ether, only to be unceremoniously grabbed by the cross of the leather straps over his chest. Cloud leaned over and kissed him, full and hard and deep. He pulled away just long enough to gasp a breath, and then they kissed each other again

Cloud lifted one hand lifted to Sephiroth's face, as if he still wasn't quite sure he was real. He paused.

Sephiroth's eyes. They were still the same piercing green as ever, but... the pupils. They had been cat-like slits before; Cloud had spent enough damn time staring into them to know. He'd always assumed it was some kind of Jenovian trait, which was why he'd been so incredibly pleased when their son didn't share it. But they were normal now. Just circles like any other humans.

Cloud shook the thought away to be dissected later. He rested their foreheads together. "You fucking bastard," Cloud breathed with more affection than he had intended.

Sephiroth smiled as though slightly bemused by this reception. "It's good to see you too, Cloud," he said quietly.

There was a soft gurgle from the bundle that Cloud still held in his other arm. Sephiroth stepped back, gaze dropping in confusion until he realised what it must be. "That is it?"

"Yeah. Congratulations, you have a son." It was either sarcasm or teasing; Sephiroth couldn't quite tell which, and he wasn't sure Cloud knew himself.

Sephiroth opted to ignore Cloud, simply staring for a long while. "It's so small," he finally stated, unimpressed.

"...he's a baby."

"And it's very pink." Sephiroth's face fell in almost childish disappointment. "It's not very god-like."

Cloud wasn't sure whether he wanted to laugh, cry or punch Sephiroth in face. He opted for shaking his head in despair. "He's a _baby_. This is what babies look like, Sephiroth."

Sephiroth didn't pay any attention to Cloud's scathing tone. He was still staring. Their baby stared back, apparently fascinated by the new face. Sephiroth offered his finger to the tiny, grasping hand. He made a small sound that was almost an 'oh' as the little baby fingers clung on to him.

Cloud had to admit, his heart melted a little.

"He has good grip for such a tiny creature." Sephiroth approved of that much, at least.

He looked so huge in comparison to their baby; his hand alone was bigger than the child's head. It would barely take a thought for him to kill such a small, helpless thing.

It was a sobering thought, and Cloud finally regained enough sense and suspicion to take a few steps back with his precious bundle. "What are you going to with him now? I won't let you use my child to get your own damn body back."

Sephiroth blinked, raising an eyebrow at Cloud. "Why would I do that? I already have the cells I need."

He certainly looked himself; he carried himself with the grace and strength and dignity that Cloud now realised had been fading with the degradation of his temporary body. And the wing. Only Sephiroth - the real Sephiroth, not the remnants, not the temporary body - ever had that wing. It was just a question of, "_how?"_

"There were plenty of embryonic and multipotent stem cells in your discarded placenta and umbilical cord. You have your share of Jenova cells to draw on as well, after all."

"Wait, the discarded what?"

"It was simply a matter of having my temporary body absorb them. You have seen the process before, when I used Kadaj and Jenova's cells to reform myself."

"So you absorbed the- Shiva's tits, Seph, that is _gross!_ How did you... no, you know what, I really don't want to know._" _Cloud frowned. "I thought the temporary body died."

"It was in the process of dying," Sephiroth clarified. "It was necessary to crystallise it in mako to preserve it until the Jenova cells became available."

Cloud was silent for moment. "So you're not going to possess our child, or absorb his cells or anything?"

"No, Cloud." Sephiroth shook his head, as if amused by the fact Cloud would consider such a thing at all.

Cloud relaxed. For the first time in nine months, he relaxed, and it felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off his shoulders. He kissed Sephiroth again, and Sephiroth, though somewhat surprised by the sudden affection, kissed him back.

Cloud was smiling widely when they broke away from each other. "Hold him," he said, offering the blanket-bundled baby over to Sephiroth. Sephiroth gave him an uncertain look.

"It seems so small and fragile," he frowned. "Maybe I should not-"

"He's your son, Seph. Hold him."

"...how?"

Cloud rolled his eyes in exasperation and manhandled Sephiroth into a suitable baby-holding position. He tucked his son into his arms. "There."

Sephiroth shifted his weight awkwardly. Cloud had never seen the man look so thoroughly bewildered in his life, standing there with a tiny child in his arms and no idea how to react to it.

It was oddly adorable. Cloud hid a grin behind his hand.

"It is like a tiny person," Sephiroth said, frowning in confusion.

"_He_," Cloud corrected. "And, yeah. That's kind of what a baby is. What were you expecting?"

"A large gelatinous blob of replicated Jenova cells."

Cloud stared at him for a long moment before bursting into laughter. "You are _ridiculous_, you know that?"

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow at Cloud, but he was still paying more attention to the baby than Cloud's strange sense of humour. "I didn't expect replicated cells to be so... cute."

He stroked a finger gently over his baby's cheeks, examining the wide eyes and tiny button nose. The baby opened his mouth and made an attempt to suck on Sephiroth's finger when Sephiroth lightly touched it against his lips. Everything about Sephiroth's expression and body language softened.

Cloud couldn't help it. He hugged both of them. He buried his face into the crook of Sephiroth's neck, careful not to jostle the baby too much.

This could work. Maybe he was being overly optimistic, but _Gaia_, he needed some optimism in his life right then. The way Sephiroth was looking at their child... with awe, almost tenderness. Sephiroth was alive, the baby was fine, and Sephiroth... Sephiroth cared. Or he could learn to care. There was definitely hope for it. This could work.

"Are you crying again?" Sephiroth asked, still sounding thoroughly bewildered by this turn of events.

"No," Cloud denied. He was trembling and sniffing a little, but no tears were present. He hid his face against Sephiroth though, just in case. "I'm just relieved. I thought... I don't know. You were going to do something awful to the baby. That you'd hate him."

"I have no plans to harm him. He is my heir, after all, and it would be counterproductive to destroy what I went to such lengths to create."

"Oh, _you_ went to lengths?"

"And I admit he is... rather adorable."

Cloud shook his head. "I didn't think you'd be so susceptible to cuteness."

"I have always been rather susceptible to you."

Cloud frowned. Or, at least, he would have called it a frown; Sephiroth would have called it a pout. "I am a fully grown _man_ and I am not cute."

Both of those statements were currently incorrect. Sephiroth knew better than to point this out, though, and only chuckled. Then his eyes widened as the baby yawned in his arms.

Susceptible to cuteness indeed.

"Aw, baby's sleepy," Cloud cooed, much to Sephiroth's amusement.

"Have you not named him yet?"

"Oh." Cloud took the bundle from Sephiroth's arms and started gently rocking it, almost subconsciously now. "No. We... never really discussed it. Before you left. I was thinking maybe you'd be around so we could choose something together."

"You didn't know when I would return."

"I was living in hope."

"You waited for me."

It sounded a lot like 'you care about me', and that was a dangerous admission to make. No matter how true it may have been. So Cloud avoided answering by busying himself with their child, re-tucking the blanket around him. He led Sephiroth into their building, where he had build a cot just around the corner of the shell's spiral. He laid the sleepy baby down.

The baby blinked wearily a few times and yawned again, eyes drifting shut.

Cloud's heart melted a little every time.

Sephiroth stood beside him, staring intently down into the cot. His fingers found Cloud's and twined them together. Cloud was trembling again, like he couldn't make sense of Sephiroth being _nice_. Of feeling like he might have a chance to happy, after all of this.

"So, what do we do now?" Sephiroth asked softly, mindful of the dozing baby.

Cloud mentally shook himself. "Well," he began, pulling Sephiroth away from the cot so they could talk without risking waking their child. "You, Mr. I Have A Wing, can start by flying off to somewhere that has decent supplies. We need some proper clothes for him, I can't keep just wrapping him in a blanket forever. And some real diapers, and wipes, and baby formula and a bottle to use to feed him with. For a start."

Sephiroth looked thoroughly bewildered again. "Baby formula," he repeated, like a mental note to himself. "But then what have you been feeding him so far?"

Cloud made a pointed gesture to his chest area. "Why do you think I'm still stuck in this damn body?"

"Oh."

Cloud gave him a wry smile. "You had no idea what you were getting yourself in for with this, did you?"

"No," Sephiroth admitted gravely.

"Fine," Cloud said, huffing a short laugh. "We'll figure it out in the morning. Right now, I want a nap while I have the chance."

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow.

"Trust me," Cloud warned him, "you'll learn to take what sleep you can get."

Sephiroth hadn't been subjected to the regular crying of a newborn yet, and thus didn't feel the need for naps, but he crawled into bed with Cloud anyway simply to enjoy the company. He wrapped an arm around Cloud's waist as they lay together, stroking the small of his back.

Cloud appreciated it. He had become addicted to Sephiroth's touch; he had thought it was a sexual thing, just the lust they shared, but he found that this casual affection was just as satisfying. The months alone had been hard. It didn't matter whether he loved Sephiroth or hated him; Cloud always felt his absence like a hollow ache in his heart.

Sephiroth's hand slowly brushed up the length of Cloud's spine. "Are you sure you only want to sleep?" Sephiroth murmured.

Well. So much for casual affection. "_Sephiroth_," Cloud protested. "You do recall I had to give birth with this body? Less that a week ago?"

"So?"

"So you don't want to go down there, believe me." Cloud sighed; it wasn't like he didn't _want_ Sephiroth, especially after so long. "As soon as we find a food source for the kid that isn't my boobs, I'm going back to my own body. Then we can fuck all you like."

Sephiroth paused, considering this. "Is that incentive for me to fetch this formula you were after? I am then able to fuck you?"

"No. But it's a nice bonus." Cloud's smile turned slightly feral. "Although... after being stuck as a girl for nine months and all the _bullshit_ you put me through, I think that _I_ should be the one to fuck _you_ for once."

"That sounds agreeable enough," Sephiroth purred.

Cloud grinned, brushing the ends of their noses together in an eskimo kiss. "Now let me have my nap. Your son hasn't given me the chance to sleep any longer than three hours at a time since he arrived."

"I apologise on his behalf," Sephiroth murmured, and Cloud just shook his head.

He curled into Sephiroth's warmth, that arm around his waist returning just to hold him. Their legs tangled together beneath the covers, and Cloud was absently aware of Sephiroth brushing the bangs from his face as he dozed.

Cloud gradually drifted out of his sleepy state, though he didn't know how long later. An hour or so, maybe. The warm of Sephiroth's body was still pressed close against him, but Sephiroth's expression was distant. Frowning. He had been using the time while Cloud was napping to think. And Sephiroth thinking that deeply was not always a good idea.

Cloud touched his cheek."What's wrong?"

"I can't hear her."

"Huh?" Cloud said eloquently. Maybe he wasn't quite as awake as he had thought.

"Mother. Jenova," Sephiroth corrected himself. "Her voice has been growing steadily fainter as her cells were destroyed. But now I am reborn - now more cells have been created - I should be able to hear her again. But I don't."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Cloud tried to sound sympathetic; Sephiroth looked so lost, like an abandoned child. But he couldn't stop his heart skipping. If that was true...

"I don't understand _why_. I am myself. The cell transfer was successful. How could it have gone wrong?"

"I don't know," Cloud said softly. He had never understood the process fully; who was he to say why it failed this time?

Sephiroth rolled away from Cloud to stare at the ceiling. "Help me work it out."

"I'm sleep deprived and don't have the first clue about Jenova anything," Cloud pointed out.

"Just lie there and pretend to listen then. Perhaps if I work through from the start..." Sephiroth ran his hand through his bangs, an uncharacteristically distressed gesture. He closed his eyes in concentration, pulling together the memories that he had long since cast aside. They were warped and blurred now, half-remembered fragments of lab coats and lessons.

"Jenova's cells are, as they are named, true cells, with the ability to self-reproduce and respond to stimuli. But in addition, they also have the ability to act as a virus, inserting their own genetic material into a host cell, and to selectively replicate sections of the host's genetic material in order to aggressively evolve.

"The host body - for humans, at least - sees Jenova's DNA as a pathogen and attacks the corrupted cells, eventually resulting in degenerative diseases such as degradation or Geostigma."

Despite being given a free pass not to pay attention, Cloud was doing his utmost to follow Sephiroth's impromptu alien biology lesson anyway. He wanted to know. He wanted to help, if he could. "But you never had any of that."

"No. The way that I was... produced, I was exposed to Jenova's cells and DNA from conception. My body did not see it as a pathogen and did not react. It was simply always there." Sephiroth paused before continuing. "The genetic material inserted into the host's DNA is what allows the Jenova cells to take control of the entire of the organism. It activates the Reunion instinct and allows you to hear her."

"I haven't heard her since the Geostigma was cured," Cloud added, though he found it unlikely the information would help in any way.

"But you still have Jenova cells."

"I guess?"

Sephiroth was very quiet for a moment. "A two-way conduit. When the Geostigma was cured, it did not remove the Jenova cells from your body. That would be impossible. Instead... you could be healed by the cells becoming harmless to you. Rather than implanting Jenova's genetic code into your DNA, the cells were forced to accept your genetic code into them instead. A two-way conduit; it can occur both ways. Your body then recognised the cells as being your own, and no longer attacked them."

Cloud was staring at Sephiroth with wide eyes, not sure he was quite keeping up with the speed of Sephiroth's theorising. "You don't know that, though."

"No. We wouldn't know for certain without having the cells tested, and thankfully there is no one left alive who can do that now." Sephiroth bared his teeth at the mention, then continued his train of thought. "Extrapolating from that scenario, the cells in the child and the cells that replicated inside you... the cells I absorbed. They still retain Jenova's abilities. But the genetic material," Sephiroth frowned, "that is yours. When the final true Jenova cells collected in the temporary body came into contact with the new cells, the new ones would have been superior in strength and number. They inserted the new DNA, overwriting the old, 'inferior' genetic code."

"I don't..." Follow. Understand. Cloud shook his head. "You need to come up with better conversation starters for pillow talk," he joked lightly.

Sephiroth was staring at him now.

"It's you."

"What's me...?"

"You. Your DNA. Your cells. You _overwrote_ her."

"What?"

"You are Mother now."

"_What?!_" Cloud yelped. Too loud, and he winced when he heard the thin wail coming from the cot. "Shit," he sighed. He held up a finger, indicating for Sephiroth to stay where he was, and untangled himself from the bedsheets.

He took longer than he needed to, taking the chance to try to process what Sephiroth was implying. It was just a theory. It didn't mean he was _right_.

But there was the way he had been able to sense Sephiroth's presence, from the exact moment he absorbed the new cells. He had assumed it was just the Jenova cells in both of them, but Sephiroth was right. He couldn''t feel any of Jenova's influence, despite such a Jenova-like trait being apparent. And Sephiroth's eyes. The cat-slit pupils that weren't cat-slit anymore. It could have been just a coincidence, but that seemed increasingly unlikely.

Cloud's cells had certainly altered _something_, it seemed.

He scooped up their baby, holding him close against his chest and murmuring soothing nothings. When he had quietened, Cloud brought him back to the bed.

Cloud gave Sephiroth a hard stare. "I know this sounds really ironic right now, but I am no 'mother'. I will accept that maybe some of the genetic code got a little mixed up somewhere along the way. But maybe Jenova just got sick of us."

Sephiroth smirked a little. The first of those certainly was an ironic statement, given that Cloud was cradling their child at that precise moment. "I doubt that."

"You really think I... overwrote her?"

"I cannot sense her at all. I can only sense you. Your heartbeat, your breath, your energy."

"Well, I am lying right next to you." Cloud gave a small smile, which soon faded. "She's gone...?" He breathed it like a wish.

"It seems likely."

Cloud laid their son down between them, and curled on his side to stare at Sephiroth.

This could work. No Jenova meant no burning down villages, no clones, no destruction of the Planet. Sephiroth had been a good man before everything went to shit. ShinRa pushed him to the edge and Jenova dragged him over, but both of them were gone now. Maybe they could do this.

Sephiroth seemed despondent at his loss, but he had more immediate family now. The more immediate family in question was grasping curiously at the silver strands of Sephiroth's bangs, and Cloud allowed himself to smile.

This could work.


End file.
